Washington, Pa., Sep 13: Authorities in Washington, Pennsylvania, have declared a state of emergency after heavy rain triggered severe flash flooding, inundating roads and homes, overwhelming the drainage system and leaving debris across parts of the city.
Mayor JoJo Burgess said the flooding was the worst the city had experienced in years. The emergency declaration will help the city recover additional costs associated with the storm.
“It was bad,” Burgess said, describing the extent of the flooding.
Near City Hall, Burgess and his wife witnessed a car stranded in floodwater. Video showed one person climbing out through the driver’s-side window while another person standing in the flooded road helped them to safety.
“It was like, wow, that’s an eye-opener, because it usually doesn’t flood like that,” Burgess said.
The force of the water also overwhelmed parts of the city’s underground drainage network. Water was seen shooting out of manholes, with some covers being pushed completely off.
“This was so significant, you could tell that the drains were working, but the system that is underground here was so bad that the water was going in, and that’s why it was coming out of the manhole covers,” Burgess said.
“It was just so fast that it pushed the manhole covers up and flooded the road,” he added.
Burgess said the city’s storm drains had been cleaned only a week earlier, but the intensity and speed of the rainfall overwhelmed the system.
Local fire departments spent hours pumping water from the basements of flooded homes, while several streets were left covered with debris and tree limbs.
Businesses were also affected. At Phantom Fireworks, vehicles used the flooded parking lot to avoid a submerged section of Jefferson Avenue, leaving gravel and debris behind.
Ray Miniotas, manager of the business, said he had already cleared tree limbs but would have to clean up the gravel spread across the parking lot.
“I thought they were crazy actually, because that can do a lot of damage to your car,” Miniotas said of motorists driving through the flooded parking lot.
Miniotas said the location has experienced street flooding three times since it opened in June, raising concerns over recurring flooding at the busy intersection.
“They [officials] have to do something,” he said, warning that the flooding poses risks to motorists, nearby homes and businesses as well as tractor-trailers that frequently use the area.
Burgess acknowledged that the stretch in front of Phantom Fireworks has experienced repeated flooding. He said several roads in the city are maintained by the state, limiting the city’s ability to undertake work on them without permission.
“We’re going to get our people in touch with them to see what we need to do to make sure that’s taken care of,” Burgess said.
The city is now expected to coordinate with state authorities on measures to address recurring flooding and improve safety at vulnerable locations.
